The South Blue had never been kind, but as the Sunny entered the island chain marked by the violet constellation, it felt less like an ocean and more like a warzone.
Lightning split the clouds every few seconds, each strike close enough to rattle the ship's frame. Waves rose like moving walls, only to crash sideways as if pushed by invisible hands.
The Storm's First Touch
Nami clung to the wheel, teeth clenched.
"This isn't random! The wind's shifting every thirty seconds exactly."
Robin steadied herself against the rail.
"A pattern… like a song."
Lyra's expression tightened.
"No — like a challenge. The Storm Flameborne is making us prove we can keep time with them."
Into the Eye
Following Nami's navigation, the Sunny weaved through whirlpools and lightning strikes until they reached the center of the chaos — an eerie calm where the water spun slowly around a single towering spire of rock.
Atop the spire stood a tall figure in a cloak of black and deep violet, lightning dancing lazily along their arms. Their eyes glowed faintly, and the air around them hummed like charged wires.
"Flamebearer," they called down, "you seek my verse while your sea still breathes. Why?"
Arkan's voice carried across the water.
"Because if the Serpent sings it, none of us will breathe."
The Herald Appears
Before the Flameborne could answer, a column of water erupted beside the spire. From it stepped a Herald clad in storm-gray armor, their helm shaped like a thundercloud. Every movement they made triggered a blast of wind or a lightning arc.
"The verse is already claimed," the Herald said, voice like rolling thunder.
They raised both hands — and the sky above cracked open. Bolts fell in rapid succession, forcing the Sunny's crew into frantic motion to avoid being obliterated.
The Battle in the Storm
Zoro and Sanji leapt from the deck onto the spire's lower ledges, cutting through rock and wind to get closer. Jinbe stayed aboard to guard the Sunny against waves large enough to crush the ship.
Nami used her Clima-Tact to catch and redirect stray lightning, buying Arkan time to close in on the Flameborne.
The Storm Flameborne's gaze shifted between Arkan and the Herald.
"Two claimants… let the storm choose."
With a snap of their fingers, the wind formed a spiraling battlefield suspended above the spire, where every strike of lightning was part of an unrelenting rhythm.
Arkan's Breakthrough
Lyra's voice rose over the chaos, matching the rhythm exactly. Arkan fell into sync with her timing, using bursts of flame between beats to deflect the Herald's attacks.
The Herald faltered once, missing the tempo — and in that instant, the Flameborne of Storms unleashed a single bolt that pierced their armor and hurled them from the battlefield into the sea below.
The Violet Verse
The Storm Flameborne held out a shard of crystal shaped like a lightning bolt, humming faintly in time with the rain.
"You kept pace. Take the verse — but know that the storm serves no master."
Arkan accepted it, feeling the pulse of its rhythm join the others they'd collected.
Final Scene
As they sailed away from the spire, Nami pointed to the horizon. The gold constellation point marking the Dawn Flameborne had stopped moving — and was now fixed over a dark patch of sea where no islands were charted.
"Looks like the Dawn is waiting for us," she said.
Arkan's eyes narrowed.
"Or for the Serpent."